A total of sixteen passengers from a cruise ship linked to a hantavirus outbreak are being monitored at the Nebraska Medical Center, where one person who tested “mildly positive” is being cared for in a biocontainment unit.
The remaining 15 passengers in Omaha are being housed in a less restrictive quarantine unit that officials compared to hotel accommodations. The passengers range in age from their late 20s to their 80s, officials said.
Each quarantined individual is staying in a separate room with no visitors or contact with other passengers. They are only interacting with medical staff, though officials said they do have access to technology.
Health officials said the monitoring period lasts 42 days, the maximum incubation period for the virus. Day one is counted from the last possible exposure to the virus.
The person who tested “mildly positive” before arriving in the United States is not showing symptoms, according to officials at Nebraska Medicine. The individual is expected to undergo additional testing.
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Two other individuals, a couple, were sent to Atlanta. One of them was symptomatic, officials said. They were transferred to ensure space remains available in Nebraska in case any of the 15 quarantined passengers later test positive and require transfer to a biocontainment unit.
The Andes strain of hantavirus can spread from person to person through very close contact and the exchange of bodily fluids.
Symptoms can include fever, headache, muscle aches, cough and shortness of breath. There is no FDA-approved therapeutic treatment for the virus, and care is generally focused on managing symptoms.
The cruise ship, the MV Hondius, anchored in the Canary Islands on Sunday, and passengers were later flown to their home countries.
A French woman who tested positive for hantavirus saw her condition worsen overnight and is hospitalized.
So far, three cruise ship passengers have died, though health officials continue to stress that the risk to the broader public remains low.
